


Faded Memories of Long Ago

by GreenBread



Series: TWDG: One Shot Collection [4]
Category: The Walking Dead (Telltale Video Game)
Genre: Clementine Needs a Hug (Walking Dead), Don't worry, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Nightmares, She gets it though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-09
Updated: 2020-07-09
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:22:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25170826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GreenBread/pseuds/GreenBread
Summary: AJ had seen the sadness that overwhelms his protector, the sadness that she tries her hardest to hide from him. The long, lost looks that she thinks he doesn’t notice.He sets himself a challenge.Operation: Hug Clementine.
Relationships: AJ | Alvin Jr. & Clementine (Walking Dead)
Series: TWDG: One Shot Collection [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1741540
Comments: 3
Kudos: 17





	Faded Memories of Long Ago

Clementine startled awake with a large jolt, rocking forward in the car seat and almost hitting her head on the steering wheel. Cold beads of sweat clung to her skin like a thick blanket and her amber eyes were wide. Hyperventilating from the nightmare, she sunk into the leather of the car seat. She ran her hands down her face, wiping the liquid away. She took a deep breath and checked the backseat of the car. AJ was still there, curled into a ball and hiding under her denim jacket. He was snoring lightly and each breath visible and hanging in the frozen air like coconuts on a palm tree.

Shivering from the icy chill running down her naked arms, Clementine hugged herself. Gazing out the window revealed the black, star-filled sky. The moon was out, igniting everything in a glorious blue glow. She watched as birds flew through the sky, cluttering so close together that they were almost touching. Hordes of trees stuck out the ground as if they were spikes, blocking the car from any walker's vision. People weren't a worry for Clementine. Most of them had died a long time ago. 

Like Lee... 

She sniffled. She killed him. If she hadn't of ran away like a bratty child he would still be with her. He would be alive.

Placing her hand around the handle she pushed the door open and stepped out of the very car that had quickly become a cage. The smooth breeze hit her face and she instantly relaxed. Her skin felt clammy but the cold helped. It helped a lot. She closed the door, careful not to wake the sleeping child still inside. 

He would be fine for a couple of minutes. She just needed to get away for a bit. 

Clementine pulled the bill of her hat down over her brown orbs and she walked, pushing through the underbrush of the trees. The sight on the other side was magnificent. The pale moonlight reflected off the surface of the lake and her feet pushed into the sand, moulding the grains over her boots. Trees were dotted around the edge and a small, rocky island resided in the middle of the water. 

For a brief, fleeting moment; she wondered if that would make a good place to set up a camp of some kind. The idea was doomed to fail though and her brain started to instantly fill itself with flaws. How would they get there? What about food? What about walkers? They could walk underwater after all. Exhaling, the brunette sat down on the silky sand and mindlessly picked up a flat rock. She reared her arm back and the rock flew, skimming across the liquid. 

She smiled sadly. Her dad had taught her that one. Maybe she could teach AJ? Dismissing the idea she looked at the moon, analysing the craters that dented its rough, rocky and rugged surface. She ground her teeth together as the familiar phantom pain of her missing finger struck her like a wave. Clementine massaged the nub of her finger, dimly easing the pain. Her nails were getting long. 

Sighing, she started chewing on them, breaking them down. She didn't bite them down to her finger though. The dark green bushes behind her rattled with activity. 

"Shouldn't you be asleep?" She asked, without looking back. 

"I was cold," AJ responded simply, sitting beside the teenager. He looked up at her, worry shining in his dark as coal eyes. For a kid, he sure was smart. Clementine smiled at him, though it quickly fell back into sadness. "Aren't you cold?" 

"No, I'm not, Goofball. Just sad." 

"About?" He edged and she sighed, looking at her feet and then back up again. 

"Life and what it used to be like and how it is now. What's the point? Why do we survive? What is there to live for?" Her eyes softened and she looked down, running her fingers through the white sand; she watched as it filtered through her calloused hands. AJ quickly and sneakily snuck under her armpit, banging his head onto her chest. She grunted and draped an arm over his small shoulders. Resting her head on his bushy hair, she planted a small, tender and motherly kiss to the child's forehead. "Then I remember I still have you. We have each other and I suppose, that's all that counts." 

AJ smiled and they both looked out upon the lake. "Will we ever stop running?" 

"Running? Why'd you say that?" 

"It's just..." He sighed, "We're always moving and I don't know where, you don't know where." He pointed out, cocking his head.

"I...I guess until we find somewhere we can stay. Where we'll be safe. That's all I want for you, you know? A place for you to be a normal kid without worrying about this shitty world," She quietened, gazing absently at a flat rock. Her father teaching her popped into her head. "Say," She eventually said, "Did I ever teach you how to skim?" 

"Skim?" AJ parroted.

Clementine smiled, she could at least give him some form of a childhood. "It's where you throw a rock and it bounces along the water." 

AJ's eyes sparked with excitement. "Cool..." He whispered. 

"It sure is, bud. It sure is..." 


End file.
